Another rainy day in Salt Lake

Wow! This weather has been incredibly wet and cold. Day after day of rain and big thunderstorms is unusual weather here in Salt Lake. Its amazing the effect weather can have on your psyche and on your schedule.

This morning, Mitch and Madeline began piano lessons. I stayed for the first part, took a walk, and then came back for the last part of the lesson. There's a lot to learn about reading notes and keys for little ones on the first day, but it was fun for me to come home and pick out some simple notes after listening to their lesson. I think that will give me greater ability to help them practice and I may actually learn to read music and play the piano myself.

After piano, Pete had a surgery cancel, so he came home for a few hours. When he was headed back to work, I asked if he would drop me and my bike at the post office, so I could mail the bills and ride my bike home. I'm trying to get myself in shape for a bike ride in August and this weather has not helped my cause. Anyhow, he kindly consented. As I was riding home, the clouds rolled in dark and ominous. I high-tailed it home, hoping to avoid the rain. Jake and his buddies wanted to play basketball at Cottonwood Heights, so we jumped in the car to drop them off. As I waited outside to be sure they made it to the gym, the storm hit. Unbelievable the power of the elements. Within minutes, the rain gutters and storm drains turned into miniature rivers, swelling and overflowing with water. At street corners where two intersections met, small lakes had formed in the streets. As you can imagine, driving in this type of weather is a bit stressful, so with a white-knuckles clutching the steering wheel, we headed for home.

As I'm driving, shoulders clenched and neck tight, I noticed that Madeline is humming. I look over at her seat and she's tracing the rain drops with her finger, humming to herself. I glanced in my rear-view mirror and see Tyler, peacefully asleep, mouth wide open, slack-jawed (he inherited that from his father). It made me think about the level of security we give our children. Thankfully my stress in driving wasn't translating into Madeline's observation of the storm. Lightning cracking, thunder booming, ground shaking, hail pounding the windshield didn't seem to phase her. Instead, she's humming pleasantly to herself, actually enjoying the storm. I think that's the beauty and innocence of childhood. The confidence and security to know that people love you and will take care of you when the storms come. I'm grateful to observe these moments periodically, to give me better insight into the simple pleasures of life. I think the tension shrank from my shoulders, a little bit anyway.

We decided to drive down a road where you cross a bridge over Little Cottonwood Creek, a river that meanders through the area where we live. The bridge dips fairly low, and the water level was just below the bridge, rushing and muddy with debris. I think that was the first time during the storm that I heard a little gasp from Madeline. Thankfully we're home now, safe and snug in our house. I guess it's another movie day here.